Crazy Times
by Icy-Kitty117
Summary: Haruhi is in serious trouble! Can the hosts save her before it is too late? Who is the new guy interfering in Haruhi's life? Is he a friend or foe? Rated T just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey all! Just a quick note, this is my very first attempt at a fanfic, so please be patient. Also thanks a bunch to my Beta-reader! Kerilu95, you are so awesome!**

**Anyways, enough of that, please enjoy!**

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Chapter 1

There were so many people around. Despite that, she was still lonely. Her friends were being their usual animated, dramatic, crazy selves. The girls were talking to her about useless stuff. Again. Still. Going on and on about superficial problems. That mindless chatter was driving her insane. Why? Because she was still lonely. Not one of those girls was truly her friends.

'Too much. Can't take much more of this...'

Little did she know that there was one boy who HAD noticed her distress. After all the airheaded girls were, politely, forced to leave, one simple little sentence made her lash out in anger, hurt and confusion.

"Haruhi, the tea-set broken before club time will be added to your debt. That was worth about 30 000 yen, a piece. There was 6 pieces broken so that's a total of 180 000 yen."

She started shaking in anger. Her bangs fell over her eyes and a dark aura started appearing. The third demon has been awoken...

The others started to slowly back away from the fuming girl (masquerading as a boy). Only Kyoya and Mori still stood strong(?), but even Kyoya was slightly... disturbed ('cause face it, Kyoya Ohtori does NOT get scared. Ever.)

"That WAS NOT MY FAULT! YOU CAN'T KEEP ADDING THINGS TO MY DEBT AT YOUR LEISURE! Tamaki and the twins broke that set, so how about you LET THEM PAY FOR IT! I am sick and tired of always being treated as less than a person, a mere toy, someone to torture. I AM DONE! You are rich-asses, pay for your own STUPID vase and tea-sets! I AM LEAVING!"

She started stomping towards the door. Then as an afterthought she turned and said:

"AND DON'T EXPECT ME TO COME BACK!"

The door slammed as she left, leaving a few confused teenagers in her wake.

The twins were the first to break the silence.

"What just happened?" they asked in unison.

"NOOOO my precious daughter left! Mommy, how could you?" Tamaki started bawling and landed in a crumpled heap on the floor.

Hunny's tears started falling and he clutched Usa-chan tighter. "Whaa! Haru-chan! Why was she so angry? Whaa!"

Kyoya was only shocked momentarily before he schooled his expression. Clearing his throat he quickly excused himself, but Mori stopped him with a hand on the shoulder.

"Let her cool down first." Mori knew that Kyoya would go to Haruhi to find out why she suddenly snapped. He also knew that Haruhi didn't need more of Kyoya's reprimanding and infuriating comments.

Kyoya looked back at the tall, stoic senior. After a moment of contemplation he nodded. "Do you know what is bothering her, Mori-sempai?"

Mori could not believe that not even Kyoya of all people knew what was wrong, after all, Kyoya IS the Shadow king of Ouran High School. He supposedly knows everything. Staring at the younger boy for a second longer, he nodded.

"Haven't you been listening?" with that he turned, grabbed his bag and left.

Mori wasn't sure if what he thought was the problem, was really the problem, but he trusted his instinct, after all, it had never failed him before.

Back in the clubroom, all the hosts (minus Haruhi and Mori) were sitting on the couches, trying to figure out what could possibly have made Haruhi react the way that she did.

"Why was Haruhi so angry? We didn't even bother her as much as usual today." said the two troublemaking twins. They were talking in sync, as per usual.

"Did Haru-chan want some cake?" That was Hunny's solution for everything. CAKE.

"Mother! Is our darling daughter not being treated well by her classmates?" A panicking Tamaki asked Kyoya. Turning on the twins he started yelling "What did you two doppelgangers do to my daughter?!"

"Nothing Tono..." Began Hikaru. "...would want to know about" Kaoru finished his brother's sentence , both wearing identical Cheshire cat grins. This only aggravated Tamaki all the more.

"Well we do know one thing. Haruhi's sense of honour will make her come back to finish paying off her debt. She won't run from that." Kyoya was thinking out loud and trying to figure out what Mori could have meant. Haven't you been listening? Kyoya knew that he was missing something, the only question was WHAT? What was he missing?

Mori was walking towards Haruhi's house. He had (wisely) refrained from taking his limo to her humble home. Walking past a park, he saw Haruhi sitting on one of the swings. Alone. Her bangs were covering her face and her bag was discarded to the side.

Softly sighing in relief, Mori walked over and sat on the swing next to her. He was way too big in stature to be comfortable on the child's swings, but sat down anyway. Lightly moving back and forth, Mori watched Haruhi as she sat still and silent on the swing next to him.

Haruhi knew he was there. She felt rather than saw him coming over. He had such a strong presence that even she could feel it. She felt his eyes on her as the swing softly squeaked with his gentle movements. Maybe she could tell him. He would understand, right? Or maybe not, after all, he still had both of his parents and a younger brother, as well as a cousin who was with him almost 24/7. What would he know about this loneliness that she was currently feeling?

But then again, he could just listen. He was good with that; listening that is. He was always so quiet during host club, but Haruhi knew that he talked more when he was comfortable. She saw it. Only once, but nevertheless, she saw it. She knew he had his reasons for being so quiet at school. It was mostly because Hunny-sempai talked enough for the both of them, his hyperactive personality making it unnecessary for Mori-sempai to talk much.

"Haruhi," the sound of her name coming from the gentle giant brought her out of her musings. She looked up to show that she was listening. His clear grey eyes were staring intensely at her when she looked up, as if he was searching for answers in her eyes.

He saw the struggle in her big brown orbs. It was not a struggle that he was familiar with, but he was willing to listen and assist her if he could.

"Do you want to talk?" he was a man of few words usually. He could see her contemplating his offer, thinking it over. Her eyes said that she was willing to talk. She slowly nodded.

"Alright."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey y'all! I'm glad to see an interest so quickly! Thanks to all the quick reviewers! **

**Oh, and I forgot the disclaimer... I do not own Ouran Highshool Host Club! AT ALL, other wise there are some hosts I would have kept for myself *creepy laughter***

**Thanks again to Kerilu95 for being my beta-reader!**

**Here is chapter 2, please enjoy!**

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Chapter 2

"Before I begin, I just have a few questions. Are the other hosts here?" Haruhi did not want the others to know. They would just stretch the whole thing out of proportion or try to help, but will only make things worse.

Mori could understand why Haruhi would not want the others around. He also liked his solitude from time to time, despite Hunny being a nearly-constant companion. And the others have too much of a flare for dramatics.

He shook his head, "I came alone. It seemed like you could use a friend" he said the last part softly, not wanting her to think that he had ulterior motives of some kind. He really only wanted to be there for her. She had looked so depressed earlier, during club time.

"Good, I wouldn't want the others to know what I am about to tell you." Thinking for a moment, Haruhi stood up, grabbed her bag and motioned for Mori to follow. He gladly obliged.

They walked the short distance to Haruhi's apartment. Once inside, Haruhi locked the door and all the windows. This out-of-the-ordinary behavior bothered Mori slightly, but he didn't say anything; it was not his place to.

"Next question: Will you promise not to tell anyone what I am about to say? That also includes Hunny-sempai." Haruhi stood in front of Mori with her bangs once again covering her face. She knew that she was asking a lot to ask Mori to keep a secret from Hunny, but Hunny might spill the secret by accident. She simply couldn't risk it.

Mori stared at the girl in front of him for a while. Keeping a secret from Hunny? Could he really do that? He and Hunny were practically joined at the hip and did not keep secrets from each other. Looking at Haruhi, he could tell that she really needed to talk to someone, and she was willing to trust him. For that reason alone, he would keep her secret from even his best friend and cousin.

"I promise."

That was all it took. Haruhi almost immediately broke down when he made the promise. Her bangs were still covering her eyes, but she could no longer suppress the shaking of her shoulders. Mori's eyes widened slightly at the VERY rare sight of Haruhi crying. She was always so strong and seemed so unflappable, yet here she was crying like her world was coming to an end.

Careful not to over-step his bounds, Mori gently pulled Haruhi into a light hug. But the moment that she felt his arms around her, she grabbed Mori in a death-grip.

"Haruhi?..." Mori was at a complete loss as to what he should do, so he only held her while she cried, trying to recompose herself.

After what felt like hours, Haruhi finally calmed down enough to disentangle herself from Mori's arms. Immediately she missed the warmth that his arms provided, but she had no clue why that could be, so she blocked the confusing thoughts from her mind.

More than a little embarrassed, Haruhi stood back and quickly wiped her eyes. Mori let her go, trying to check her eyes to see if she was okay or at the very least feeling a little better.

In an attempt to regain her composure, Haruhi asked Mori if he wanted some tea. Mori caught on to the fact that she was embarrassed about breaking down, so he accepted her offer and went to sit down in the living room. A few minutes later Haruhi had regained her composure enough to face her guest. She took the tea out to where Mori was still waiting patiently for her.

"I'm sorry for ruining your shirt." Haruhi said a little sheepishly. Mori gave a very small lift of the mouth, which could be translated to be a smile.

"I can get a new one." he said simply, because he knew what her response would be.

"Damn rich bastard." Haruhi mumbled. She sat there shocked for a moment at how normal she was interacting with Mori, despite the fact that she was extremely embarrassed just moments before. She gave him a genuine smile and a warm thank you. Mori was momentarily confused for what she was thanking him for, but when realization hit, he ruffled her hair affectionately.

"So, I guess you want to know what all the weird behaviour is about." it wasn't a question, it was a statement. Haruhi sighed and then started.

She told Mori some memories she had with her deceased mother. It turns out that the following day was the 10th anniversary of her mother's death. Thoughts about the time before her death had been assaulting her all week, that had made her feel very lonely, because she and her mother would always be together after pre-school for 2 hours, then Haruhi's father would come home and her mother would go to work. The day of the accident, Haruhi's mother (Kotoko) had gone to the store to buy Haruhi's favourite cookies to celebrate Ryuji's new job. Kotoko had been hit by a drunk driver.

Mori wasn't sure why Haruhi was telling him all of this, but he would listen to the end. He had, after all, made a promise to himself, that he would support Haruhi in any possible way. If the only way was to listen, then that is what he would do, even if he had to fight tears for the suffering of the small girl in front of him.

Kotoko did not die on impact. She had been rushed to the hospital where she had been forced to stay for nearly 3 weeks. After the initial surgery, Kotoko had been stable, but because of a broken arm and collarbone, she had to stay in hospital. One week later she had a relapse. Infections in the broken areas had spiked a dangerously high fever. She had been delusional with fever for three days before she was stable again. The doctor had been very concerned about the severity of her fever, so she had wanted to keep Kotoko in hospital for the rest of the week. All was well until the day before Kotoko would have been released. Internal bleeding of unknown origin was occurring and made Kotoko very weak. Her last words to her five year old daughter were right before she went into the surgery that would claim her life.

"Please take care of your Daddy, you know what a klutz he is. Haruhi, my darling girl, never let anything stop you from chasing your dreams. Never be afraid of failure, just keep on trying."

Silent tears were running down Haruhi's face as Mori stared at her. He never knew that that was the kind of trauma Haruhi went through with her mother's death. Mori wasn't sure how to react, or even IF he was supposed to react, so he simply settled for putting his hand on her head. He knew that was not all there was to Haruhi's depressed state, so he waited patiently for her to continue.

Haruhi just sat there, concentrating on the big, warm hand on her head, to try and recompose herself. Again. She realized that she had just told Mori more than she had ever told even her father. Ryuji or Ranka as he was now known, had never heard what Kotoko had told Haruhi just before the last surgery. Haruhi had always kept it to herself, silently taking care of her father. Now she had a very big decision to make, take care of her dad, or take care of herself. Haruhi was very reluctant to tell Mori of this problem, but she knew that she could trust him. That was the problem though, he is such a good guy, that he might want to help, then she would be dragging him into the whole mess.

What to do? What to do?

'Can I really burden him with this? Can I really do that to him?'

Haruhi didn't realize that her eyes were betraying her confusion, worry and pain to the man in front of her. Mori could see that Haruhi didn't want to tell him more. He could see that whatever was really wrong, is big, REALLY big. Did he dare get involved? Could he really handle it if it was something that he could not protect her from? He didn't want her to suffer alone, but his heart was very soft when it came to the little slip of girl in front of him. Steeling himself for whatever was to come, he gently prompted Haruhi to continue.

At his gentle prompt, Haruhi decided to just come out and say it, to spill it all and let him work it out for himself.

Haruhi was hiding behind her hair again before she spoke "I have to get married or risk my dad getting killed."

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**Ok, so I have a question to my awesome readers: Do you want me to put the last paragraph of the previous chapter in at the top? My chapters seem to be flowing a little into each other, so please let me know if that would be easier...**  
**Review if you you want! bye-bye! ^.^/**


	3. Chapter 3: the Problem Revealed

**Hey Hey! I'm back with chapter 3! Aren't you lucky? hehe Thanks to_ Sesshy's Rose _(Yes that's what I asked, so thanks!) Very big thanks (again) to my awsome Beta - Kerilu95!**

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_At his gentle prompt, Haruhi decided to just come out and say it, to spill it all and let him work it out for himself._

_Haruhi was hiding behind her hair again before she spoke "I have to get married or risk my dad getting killed."_

Chapter 3

Mori sat frozen._ 'What?_' He blinked once, twice, "What?"

Haruhi didn't look up as she started explaining.

"My dad has a lot of debt with this one guy. He helped to support us for a long time after mom died. Even after Dad got the job at the bar where he works now, he had to sometimes borrow money from him. The debt just never stops. It's like what Kyoya-sempai does to me, he just keeps adding to Dad's debt without real reason. Since there is no written agreement, Dad can't go to a lawyer, because he won't have a case. The man came to me and offered me an ultimatum, either I marry his son and Dad's debt will be cleared, or he would hurt him, possibly kill him."

Haruhi drew a shaking breath, and took a sip of her long-gone-cold tea. Mori on the other hand was furious. How could you threaten a fifteen year old girl to take away the only family she had? Before he could ask how Ranka could possibly even consider such an ultimatum, Haruhi spoke again.

"Dad doesn't know that he came to me. He would rather get hurt than allow me to do something like that. He would try to confront that man, and that would definitely get him killed. The guy has yakuza connections. Lots of them."

"By the way you're talking it seems as though you're considering actually marrying the son." Mori hoped against his better knowledge that he was wrong, but Haruhi's silence just confirmed his fear.

"How can I? He is nine years older than me, and is only interested in someone to have sex with whenever he feels like it. His father wants him to stop playing around, that's why he wants his son married. Less than two months from now. But I can't let Dad get killed! He is the only family I have left! He wants my answer by Saturday." Today was Thursday.

Mori's mind was working overtime. He knew he had to do something. There was no way that he could let Haruhi throw her life away like that. He came to the most obvious conclusion, but one that Haruhi would not go for easily.

"I'll pay it."

Haruhi looked up with a deep frown on her face. A straight clear answer was on her lips.

"No. It is not your problem, Mori-sempai, it's mine. I will not allow you to get involved in this mess."

Her answer was final. Mori knew it won't be easy to convince her to allow him to help, but he knew that he had to stop her. Somehow. Despite the fact that they don't interact all that much at school or even during club time, he considers Haruhi a very dear friend, and someone he wants to protect.

"Besides, even if I let you pay my father's debt, that would only mean that we will be indebted to the Morinozuka family."

"True, but my family will never put your father or you in a situation like you are now." Mori really did hope Haruhi would at least consider taking his offer.

"And what happens when we can no longer pay back what we owe? Besides, that guy won't just go away because he got his money. He is rich enough that our debt is merely pocket money to him. He wants either me or my dad. I don't know why." She muttered the last part more to herself than to Mori. After a few second of contemplation, she continued.

"Maybe he wants me, but knows that my dad would never allow that to happen so he would kill my father because he is my only family, thus forcing me to comply with his wishes." Haruhi's eyes grew wide at the realization.

"Dad!" She ran to the phone to call the bar where her father worked. Mori watched with concern as her Haruhi went pale as she spoke. He immediately knew that something was very wrong.

Haruhi dropped the phone on the hook and started trembling.

"He left an hour ago." That was not good. It was only a twenty minute walk from the bar to their apartment. And by the look on Haruhi's face, Ranka did not leave with a friend.

Mori quickly got up and grabbed Haruhi's keys.

"Let's go." She didn't need to be told twice. She ran out the door the second Mori opened it, not even waiting for him to lock it behind them. Mori locked the door as quickly as he could and caught up with Haruhi. His long legs and athletic abilities made it easy to catch up.

Haruhi was frantic, her dad was her only family left after her mom died. She couldn't lose him too, not now, preferably not ever.

Mori was afraid of what they might find. He spared Haruhi a sideways glance and saw her pale, terrified expression. His heart bled for her, but he could not help her, if she did not let him. They reached the alleyway closest to the bar. Mori walked in first, just in case there was still thugs around. What he saw made him stop dead in his tracks. Ranka laid there in a pool of blood, with a very prominent head wound. Mori swallowed thickly and bent down to feel Ranka's pulse. To his relief it was still there, but very weak. He quickly got up and called an ambulance.

Haruhi came in as he was giving their location to the ambulance. Her eyes grew wide as she saw her father lying in a pool of his own blood.

"DAD!" She wanted to get to him, but Mori stopped her.

"He is alive, but very weak." He couldn't lie to her about Ranka's condition. As they were waiting for the ambulance, Mori called for a car. The ambulance showed up just as he ended the call to his driver.

Working fast, the ambulance men loaded Ranka in the ambulance and sped off to the nearest hospital without asking if one of the teens were family. That fact only made Haruhi panic more, because it meant that her father was in a critical condition. Not five minutes later, Mori's driver showed up and they were off to the hospital.

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**Ah, the clifhangers I hate so much yet love to use... I would apologize, but that would mean I am actually sorry for using it, so I'll compromise. I am sorry for loving to use clifhangers! *runs and hides***

**Just a special thanks to all my reviewers so far! Sesshy's Rose; Dramaticchick4thewin; JCardes; Hita-Chan; and of course, Kerilu95!**

**See/read ya'll next chapter!**


	4. Chapter 4: Pain

**Hey my dear readers! I'm back again! Thanks to the amazing Kerilu95 who had, again, Beta'ed this chapter!**

**Enjoy Chapter 4!**

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_Working fast, the ambulance men loaded Ranka in the ambulance and sped off to the nearest hospital without asking if one of the teens were family. That fact only made Haruhi panic more, because it meant that her father was in a critical condition. Not five minutes later, Mori's driver showed up and they were off to the hospital._

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**Chapter 4 : Pain **

The waiting room was cold and empty. Haruhi was alternating between pacing and sitting like a statue. Mori could only watch her worriedly. He had called home to let his brother know that he might be home very late. He didn't give a reason.

Haruhi was pacing again. It had already been three hours, why didn't they hear anything? Someone must know something, right? She was starting to get even more panicked, what if her dad didn't make it? Where would she go then? She would have to leave Ouran and get a job, she won't be able to finish school, let alone become a lawyer like her mother.

Mori saw that she was getting more and more worked up, so he stood up and brought her into a tight hug. The second his arms were around her, she got him in another death-grip. She couldn't let go even if she had wanted to. Mori was currently the only stable thing in her world. He was getting more worried about Haruhi by the minute. She was extremely pale and trembling like no tomorrow. He knew that she was in shock, but did not have an idea how to help her. Seeing a nurse walk by, he called her over and asked if she could give Haruhi something for the shock.

The nurse looked at Haruhi for a moment before she nodded. Not long after she came back with a needle. "It will help her to calm down a little." she explained at Mori's confused expression.

The injection was just starting to take effect when the doctor came in. Mori recognized him as Yuichi Ohtori, Kyoya's eldest brother. Haruhi looked up with a question in her eyes.

Yuichi also recognized the Morinozuka's eldest son, but showed no sign of it. He turned to Haruhi "Fujioka-san?"

Haruhi nodded "Is he gonna be okay?"

Yuichi read the fear in her eyes and voice. He could tell that the news might break her, but he couldn't lie to her.

"Your father sported three broken ribs, which punctured his right lung, we had managed to fix the puncture though." He took a deep breath before he delivered the bad news "Your father has also suffered major head-trauma. He is currently in a coma and there is no way of knowing when and if he will wake up."

Yuichi watched as the young girl shrunk back from his words, she started trebling again. He knew there was nothing he could say or do to make the reality better, but he still felt bad as he watched the girl fall apart right in front of his eyes. Kyoya had spoken of this girl before, about how she was so strong and even stood up to their father. The girl in front of him now though, looked like a lost child, silent tears falling from her eyes.

"It looks like he won after all. Dad won't be coming back." Yuichi didn't understand her words, but it seemed like Morinozuka did. Her father had a chance to make a full recovery, but it seemed like she didn't think so. He wondered about that until she spoke again, giving him the answer.

"Mom didn't come back. The doctor said she would make a full recovery, but she still died. A hospital is a place of death." Haruhi's eyes were glazed over as she said this.

Suddenly Yuichi also understood her behaviour about her father's condition. Unfortunately in her father's case, it was true. His chances were very slim to make a full recovery. He could, but it would be miracle.

Mori patted her head in an attempt to bring her back to the present. Now he was even more worried about her. What was she going to do now that her father was in hospital? He didn't feel comfortable leaving her at her apartment where some yakuza guy could get to her at any time.

Haruhi was now terrified. She knew that if she went home now, that man would probably be waiting for her. She couldn't go home, her dad is as good as dead... She is alone.

Yuichi also looked very concerned. Haruhi looked she was going to pass out any second. The shock was getting to her, and as a doctor he could see that she couldn't handle being alone. He made a decision.

"Morinozuka-san, can I have a word with you real quick? Fujioka-san, you may go see your father for a moment if you want to." he gave her the room number as he led the Morinozuka boy out of the waiting area.

He started speaking immediately as soon as they were out of earshot.

"She is unstable. Right now, the shock has not fully registered in her mind. Once she is left alone the shock will come to her all at once. I have seen this type of situation before, they seem alright until they are left alone. If what I heard is right, then her mother is deceased?"

Mori nodded at the question. "What are you saying?"

Yuichi's concern showed clearly in his eyes. "Some kids who lose both parents are more prone to commit suicide. Some only start cutting, but some skip that phase and immediately jump to suicide. She needs to be watched constantly. Like I said, right now her emotional state is very unstable, so she might be suicidal. She also needs therapy to help her come to terms with what happened."

Mori gasped as Yuichi was talking. He knew this would be a blow to her, but he never thought of Haruhi as becoming suicidal. The gears in his head was turning again. Realization suddenly hit him, his parents were out of town on a business trip for a few more days, so it was only him and his little brother, Satoshi, at home.

"She can stay with me for the time being."

Yuichi nodded. "Good idea. It will be best for her to have someone around. Here's my card with my personal cell number, if you notice anything that is a bigger cause for concern, please don't hesitate to call me."

He took Mori's number and promised to let him know any news concerning Ranka-san.

Meanwhile, Haruhi sat at her father's bedside. Not saying anything, not doing anything, she just stared at him. His face was bruised, with a bandage wrapped thickly around his forehead. Haruhi moved subconsciously, not really realizing that she was moving, until she took her father's semi-cold hand in her own.

"Why Dad? Why are you leaving me alone? You knew how lonely I've been since Mom died, so why are you leaving too?" Tears started dripping down her face again.

"What am I supposed to do now? How can I chase my dreams of becoming a lawyer like Mom if you are not there to cheer me on? Daddy..." Haruhi hadn't called Ranka 'Daddy' since she was a little girl of five. It was shortly after her mother had died, when she had stopped calling him 'Daddy'.

Mori stood outside the door, waiting for Haruhi to say what she wanted to her father before he went in. He didn't want to interrupt her time with the okama (crossdresser). He knew how much Haruhi loved her father, even if she didn't always show it. This was a major blow to her. He quickly called Satoshi to tell him that they will be having an extra guest for a while and to ask him to tell the maids to get a guestroom ready for her.

He stepped into the room when he thought it was okay.

"Haruhi?" he walked over to the still girl and offered her his hand. She only stared at his hand for a while before she reached out to take it.

"You will stay at my place for tonight, okay?" Haruhi didn't have it in her to fight him, so she only nodded. Together they walked out to the waiting limo.

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**Okay, so that is it for a while, I have college work o do, BUT I will try to update at least once a week. You people were lucky so far, I already had these chapters written before posting it...**

**Anywayzzzz, review if you want!**

**I.K. Out**


	5. 5 Explanations?

**Hey y'all! I'm back with chapter 5! I know this story is full of suspense, but be warned, it's about to get worse, WAY worse, before it gets better!**

**Enjoy!**

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_"Haruhi?" Mori spoke as he walked over to the still girl and offered her his hand. She only stared at it for a while before she reached out to take it._

_"You will stay at my place for tonight, okay?" Haruhi didn't have it in her to fight him, so she only nodded. Together they walked out to the waiting limo._

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**Chapter 5: Explanations**?

Satoshi was already waiting for them at the front doors. He was about to rush towards his brother when he noticed his solemn expression. He said a simple 'hello' to Haruhi, and turned a questioning gaze to his brother.

Mori saw the question in his younger brother's eyes, but he just shook his head, and softly inquired which guestroom had been prepared. Satoshi told him that it was was the one right between the two brother's rooms. Mori nodded and took Haruhi to the kitchen to get her some tea.

Satoshi looked at Haruhi's pale face in concern, but the look on his brother's face quickly made him decide against asking questions. If Takashi wanted him to know, then he would tell him later.

Haruhi was feeling completely numb. She didn't want to think. Because if she started thinking, she would start crying. She was so very confused and scared, but her mind numbed her feelings for the time being. She robotically took the tea that Mori offered to her.

Mori and Satoshi only watched her in concern and confusion respectively. Satoshi was itching to ask questions, the main one being: 'Is Haruhi really a girl?' Satoshi and Yasuchika (Hunny's little brother) had only met Haruhi once, and was still under the impression that she was a 'he'. He knew that it was probably not the best time to ask, but he was just SO curious that he just kind off blurted it out.

"Are you really a girl?" Satoshi mentally kicked himself for not keeping his mouth shut. That is, until Haruhi burst out laughing. He blushed, but gave an embarrassed laugh as well. Mori only gave a small smile at his little brother's antics, glad that Satoshi was able to make Haruhi laugh.

Haruhi laughed until her stomach hurt. The sudden, absurd question was just so unexpected, that she couldn't help but laugh. Finally catching her breath, she sat up and looked Satoshi dead in the eye when she confirmed that she was in fact really a girl, and NOT a boy as she had been introduced to him.

"Then why are you in a hostclub full of guys?" Satoshi decided that since Haruhi was answering, he might as well start asking some of the questions that was bugging him.

Haruhi shared a smile with Mori before she turned back to Satoshi to explain how she had ended up with in the hostclub. She told him about how she had been looking for a quiet place to study and wound up in the third music room, thinking that it was abandoned. Satoshi laughed at how everyone mistook her for a boy. He listened to the story of how she broke the vase worth 8million yen. Haruhi and Satoshi were having fun with the story of how she became a host, that is, until she got to the part of the debt.

Suddenly Haruhi froze when realization hit her. "The debt..." Her face paled and she started trembling. Satoshi was startled when Haruhi suddenly started shaking for no real reason that he could tell.

Mori quickly went to her side, but she stood up and excused herself quietly. He showed her to her room.

"Are you alright?" Mori asked quietly.

Haruhi gave a small smile, hoping to reassure Mori that she will be okay. She didn't want him to worry about her more than he already did.

Closing the door, Haruhi saw the room for the first time. It was HUGE! Looking around, she was thinking that she could almost fit her whole apartment in just this room. Momentarily distracted from her problems, she checked out every nook and cranny of the bedroom. It even had an ensuite bathroom. The thought 'Damn rich bastards' came up quite often during her expedition.

With the euphoria wearing off after a while, Haruhi once again realized the severity of her situation. The fear and confusion was suddenly crashing down on her. She started shaking again, the tears falling silently. After a while she could no longer suppress the sobs that raked her body. Falling on the bed, she tried to muffle the sobs in the pillows.

What am I going to do? I can't let Dad get killed, but I can't marry that guy! Would he really go away if our debt is paid? Could I really take that chance? Dear Mother in Heaven, please help me!

Satoshi was very confused. From what he knew about Haruhi from Mitsukuni and Takashi, she was a strong girl, but the person he just saw, was practically the exact opposite. What could have possibly shaken her up so much, and why did she have to stay over? Not that he minded, but he really wanted some answers.

The doorbell chose that moment to ring. Sighing, Satoshi went to open the door for whoever decided to bother them at 9:30 pm. Behind the door stood a very unhappy Shadowking.

"Um... Good evening Kyoya-sempai, how can I help you?" Well, he tried to be polite...

"Is Mori-sempai home? I really need to speak to him." came the curt answer.

Satoshi only shrugged and led the Shadowking to the livingroom where he himself had been waiting for answers. Being Satoshi, he didn't think to offer refreshments to the unexpected guest.

When Mori came back from Haruhi's room, he was not really surprised to see Kyoya. He knew that after his cryptic message after club time, the Shadowking would be seeking answers. After the day he had, however, he was not really in the mood to explain anything to him, but he also knew that it would be better to do it now, than let Kyoya bother Haruhi the next day at school. So, sighing inwardly, he greeted his late-night guest.

Kyoya was no idiot, he could tell that Mori has had a very tiring day, but right now he didn't care, he wanted answers and he wanted them immediately.

Mori looked at his brother and then at Kyoya, both wanted answers, even though it was for different reasons. He sank down on the couch next to Satoshi. Taking a deep breath, he started explaining what he could without breaking Haruhi's trust.

"Kyoya, Satoshi, what is said here, does not leave this room. Understood?" Both boys nodded, so Mori continued.

"Ranka-san got into some trouble. He was attacked earlier today and is currently in the hospital and in a coma. The doctor doesn't know if he will wake up again because of the major head trauma that he has suffered. Haruhi is very shaken up about this. She has no idea if her father will live or die. She will be staying here for the time being, I don't feel comfortable leaving her at her apartment all alone while Ranka-san is in the hospital. Kyoya, no matter what happens, you need to leave her and her debt alone until she is more stable. If there is really something to be added, I will take care of it. Satoshi, don't ask her anything about this. If she wants to talk, she will. Just be yourself, otherwise she will pick up that something is different and she will close up even more."

Satoshi and Kyoya were both too shocked to say anything. For Kyoya was it not only the news that was shocking, but that was also the most that he had ever heard Mori talk. His brain was working a-mile-a-minute, in what kind of trouble was Ranka-san and why did he not know about it? His information is always spot-on and left no stone un-turned, so how could he not know if Ranka-san was in trouble?

Satoshi was quiet. He thought back to Haruhi's strange behaviour when they got home from the hospital. It made more sense now, but there was still the question of her reaction when she was talking about her debt to the host club. He looked up at his big brother and saw the stress and, (was that fear?) in his eyes. He knew he shouldn't ask, but he couldn't let Takashi suffer in silence like he usually does, so he decided to speak up.

"Hey Taka-bro? I get the whole thing that she is worried about her father and all, but why did she react the way she did when telling me about how she became a part of the host club? She looked terrified." the confusion was evident in his voice and eyes.

Kyoya got another surprise when Satoshi mentioned Haruhi being terrified when speaking about the host club. Now he was not only confused, but concerned as well. Despite his attitude, he really does care about his friends, even though he rarely (if ever) shows it.

Mori looked at the two younger boys for a long time before he said that it was not his place to say. Seeing the clock on the wall already showed 23:14, he told Satoshi to go to bed. They still had school the next day after all.

Satoshi reluctantly agreed. Even though it was nearing midnight, Kyoya made no move to get up. He was not satisfied yet. Mori was hiding something. Something big, and that bothered him greatly, so he made no move to leave.

Mori saw that Kyoya won't leave until he had the whole story, so he also stayed seated, but made no effort to break the silence after Satoshi's departure.

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**Well that's it for chapter 5. Read ya'll next chapter!**

**Review if you please**


	6. Chapter 6:New Guy

**Hey all! Here is chapter 6 for ya! Thanks (once again) for Kerilu95 for the edit/review and everything else you did (and still do)!  
Seems like I keep forgetting the disclaimers... oopsy..**

**I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS FROM OHSHC, ONLY THE PLOT AND ANY OC'S THAT MIGHT BE ADDED LATER. **

**Hehehe, enjoy!**

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_Mori saw that Kyoya won't leave until he had the whole story, so he also stayed seated, but made no effort to break the silence after Satoshi's departure._

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**Chapter 6: New Guy**

Haruhi laid on the bed, wide awake. She had heard the doorbell earlier, but it had not really registered in her mind that it could be one of the other hosts. Her mind was once again in a state of confusion and fear, replaying the scene in the alley and hospital over, and over. Shivering, she turned on her side and closed her eyes, only to open them again a second later.

In a daze she stood up and walked to her bathroom to get some water. She saw the cabinet above the sink that she had not noticed earlier. Opening it, she looked at the razors innocently sitting on one of the shelves. In her dazed state, she didn't really realize what she was doing when she reached out and grabbed the razors. Slowly, ever so slowly she lifted her arm, razor poised above her thin wrist.

At first, she felt nothing, then she started coming out of her daze and she felt the stinging on her wrist. She freaked out, started hyperventilating, and did the only thing she could at that second. She screamed.

Satoshi was walking back to his room still grumbling about being sent to bed while the older guys continued their talk. Damn it! He also cared about Haruhi, even if they were not as close friends as she was with his brother. He had seen the change in Takashi since she came along, and he appreciated her for it, even though he only recently found out that she is girl.

He was more upset than really angry, why would Haruhi or her father not seek help if they were in trouble? None of that stuff made much sense to him because, (like Haruhi would say), he was a damn rich bastard. He didn't know anything about the struggles of the middle class -he felt wrong to call them 'commoners' ( A/n: what a good guy ^.^) .

Deep in thought, he didn't realize that he had stopped in front of Haruhi's room. A scream quickly pulled him out of his thoughts. He raced into the room without thing about the fact that it was a girl staying in that particular room. All he could think of, was protecting Haruhi from more harm than what she had already been through in just that one day.

Upon entering the bathroom from where he had first heard the scream, he stopped dead in his tracks. There, right in front of his eyes, was Haruhi, looking like a ghost and her arm looked like a shredder got ahold of it. Satoshi panicked at the sight of so much blood before he noticed Haruhi was staring at him with panic in her eyes.

"Help me…" It was no more than a mere whisper.

Satoshi made quick work of finding the first-aid kit, but he quickly realized that the wounds were too severe to simply put disinfectant and bandages on. He grabbed a towel and told Haruhi to put pressure on the deepest cuts if she could. He proceeded to pick her up bridal-style and ran back to the front door, yelling for Takashi as he got closer to the living room. Takashi and Kyoya both came running when Satoshi yelled for help. When they saw Haruhi and the blood, Kyoya quickly told him that his driver was still waiting at the front door. Satoshi and Mori were both trying to keep pressure on the wounds as well as keeping Haruhi awake. She was starting to get drowsy from the heavy blood loss. Suddenly Mori remembered about the doctor.

"Call Yuichi." Came the gruff order to Kyoya.

"Why him? We have plenty of other doctors already at the hospital." Kyoya was confused, but he scrolled to his eldest brother's number anyway.

"He's the one who had helped Ranka-san." It was clear that he won't give more information, so Kyoya dialed the number and waited impatiently for the doctor on the other end to pick up.

Cursing met him as soon as the phone was picked up.

"Dammit Kyoya! Do you have any idea what time it is?" Yuichi did NOT like to be woken up after a long and tedious day at the hospital.

"It's Haruhi. She-" Yuichi cut him off before he could go any further.

"Which hospital?"

"Tokyo General is closest." Kyoya wondered how in the world Yuichi would know that they were heading to a hospital, but knew that now was not the time to ask questions.

"I'm on my way." With that, Yuichi hung up and pulled out of the Ohtori driveway in record time. He cursed aloud as he sped towards the hospital. Had he not told the Morinozuka boy to keep a close eye on the girl? In his haste and anger, he ran 2 red lights. Luckily there were no other traffic on the road since it was after midnight already.

Yuichi reached the hospital just as Kyoya's limo pulled up in the emergency parking. He gave only one look at the blood and the almost-passed out Haruhi before he started running ahead and shouted orders at the personnel and entered the ER just as Haruhi was brought in.

Time ticked by too slowly for the three young men in the waiting room. Tic-tock, tic-tock. Every second felt like an hour for the guys waiting to hear any news on their friend. Just as the half-hour mark passed, another bloodstained person walked in and collapsed on one of the chairs in the room, a vacant expression in his visible eye.

Black leather covered his legs and combat boots on his (surprisingly small) feet. A once blue shirt, stained with blood under an equally bloodied black leather jacket. Hair parted to only show the right eye, his left eye hidden. The vacant expression in the green eye made it look like he was looking right through you.

The other occupants had noticed the new arrival but said nothing. Kyoya stood up and started pacing back and forth, as he had been doing for the last 30 minutes. Mori sat looking as expressionless as always. Sitting like a statue. Satoshi was unable to sit completely still. He kept fidgeting and twisting his fingers like a nervous girl on her first date.

Little did any of the three friends realize that the stranger was watching them. He saw the worried expression on each of their faces, no matter how well they were able to hide it from others. A nurse walked in and straight to the observer.

"Another one?! Really, Scar, you would think that you would stop picking those things off the street already!" She was clearly not very happy with this stranger she had called 'Scar'.

'Scar' rose up to speak to the nurse who had insulted someone he clearly cared about, green eye flashing dangerously.

"That 'thing', as you so rudely put it, nurse," The word was spit out like a curse. "Is only a CHILD! He cannot take care of himself and his parents TRIED TO KILL HIM! Don't you DARE tell me I am not allowed to help a helpless kid who gets tossed out onto the streets."

The other three occupants stared at the (short) boy who raised his voice to a nurse. What surprised them the most, however, were the words spoken. After all, shouldn't a nurse care about patients?

"Che! You already have fourteen of those street-rats in your care, why would you want to add another burden to yourself? That's after all the only thing those things are good for, isn't it? Putting more pressure on you?"

*SLAM!*

The nurse trembled violently as 'Scar' threw her into the wall and pressed a flick-knife against her throat. He spoke in no more than a growl,

"Those kids are innocent. Just because they were born, they should be treated as slaves? If the parents didn't want kids, then the BITCHES SHOULDN'T HAVE GOTTEN THEMSELVES PREGNANT!"

He stood back and the nurse fell to the floor. "Get out of my sight." It might have been said softly, but there was so much hatred in those 5 words that even Mori and Kyoya felt like giving this person a wide berth.

Just as the nurse had disappeared and 'Scar' took his seat again, Yuichi came in looking exhausted. Mori, Kyoya and Satoshi stood up as one man with the same question in all of their eyes: Is Haruhi alright?

Yuichi sighed as he delivered the news. "She lost too much blood. She urgently needs a blood transfusion, but she has a rare blood type, the hospital doesn't have it."

All three boy's faces fell at this. Kyoya spoke up, "Can't we get some from another hospital? "

Yuichi shook his head slowly. He explained that this blood type is extremely rare and that it's used almost as soon as the blood-banks get it in.

"She's AB-negative right?" All four turned towards the forgotten person in the chair on the opposite wall. "Scar…"

Well, seems that Yuichi knew this person. He nodded slowly.

"Well, I'm here. Let's save another life Doc." Scar stood up and walked to Yuichi who merely stared at him.

"It has not even been two weeks since your last donation. Your body can't handle the strain so often. Besides, when was the last time you ate a proper meal?" He tried to take care of his donors as well as his patients.

"Doc, there is a girl in that room who might die without a blood transfusion. How can I let my dislike for a needle stop me from helping her? Why should I, just at the risk of passing out, let her suffer?"

The stubborn look in his eye(s) and stance only made Yuichi sigh before he gave in and took Scar to draw blood.

Kyoya was slightly suspicious of the person who just left with his brother. It's not like he wasn't grateful that he was willing to help Haruhi, but something seemed a little off about that guy. He made a mental note to ask Yuichi about him later (it had to be a mental note since he had left his trusty black book in the limo). The way that guy spoke to the nurse and even threatened her with a knife did not sit well with him.

Mori was also not very happy with the way that Scar had treated the nurse, but he seemed to have a valid reason if what he had gathered from their conversation was indeed true. Even so, that was no reason to threaten her with a knife!

Satoshi was deep in thought. That 'Scar' person seemed somehow familiar… Why did he feel like he knew that person? And what was going to happen to Haruhi now? Satoshi hated the feeling of utter helplessness that he was feeling.

10 agonizing minutes later, Scar came back in with his face looking like a ghost's. He seemed to be on the verge of passing out, as he merely fell onto one of the chairs right by the door.

Satoshi was a little concerned, so he cautiously went to him and asked if he was alright. A dull green eye peered back at him, freaking him out a little, but he stood strong.

The reply came in a haunted voice: "I REALLY hate needles…"

As much as he tried, Satoshi just couldn't help but laugh at the poor guy's predicament. How could he stand to donate blood (quite regularly if he understood Yuichi-sensei right), if he was afraid of needles? He found the thought quite hilarious.

A raised eyebrow was the only response he got to his laughing fit.

Mori was not very pleased with Satoshi for approaching such an unpredictable, not to mention potentially dangerous, person so freely. He kept on guard as Scar merely stared at Satoshi from his only visible eye.

Scar chuckled softly. "I guess you're wondering how I could donate blood with the fact that I hate needles so much, is that it?"

Still struggling to get his laughter under control, Satoshi only nodded. A sad smile crossed over his face as he explained that his first donation was for his dying grandfather.

"I was the only one in the whole family who had that blood type, so it was one of two choices for the doctors: 1. Let a ten year old kid donate blood or 2. Let Grandfather die. To me, there really was no other option since Grandfather was my only family member who actually cared about me. The others were too focused on making money or being the best or whatever they thought they were doing. Grandfather became my legal guardian after I was taken away from my parents. Once, one of Grandpa's friend's children was in a car accident and needed blood, Grandpa was out of town and couldn't help, so they asked me. The kid was only about a year younger than me, so I wanted to help. That was the start of me being a regular blood donor."

He seemed to be looking back into the past, not seeing anything happening in the present. Especially not the sad look in Satoshi's eyes. Blinking a few times, he came back to the present and smiled at the others.

"I had to face my fear to save the ones I cared about. Now I do it because I know how many people need help that I can give."

Satoshi nodded gravely. He understood the want to protect others very well, as does Mori. Yuichi came in a few moments after the explanation had been finished. Everybody looked up at him as he entered the waiting room, even Scar looked up. He gave a tired smile.

"Fujioka-san will be fine. She is still a little weak, but she should be alright in a few days. Her arms, however, might scar. The cuts were very deep on some places."

Scar stiffened at the name. "Did you just say 'Fujioka'? As in Haruhi Fujioka?" His eye(s) were guarded, but at the same time desperate?

"Yes. Do you know her?" Yuichi watched as the little color in Scar's face drained as well.

Scar only nodded. Numbly he asked what had happened to Haruhi. None of the others in the room felt like explaining that she had tried to commit suicide (as it seemed like she did), so they stayed silent. Scar didn't really seem to care about the lack of response as he asked another question that no-one wanted to answer.

"Where is her father?"

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**Ooohh, another cliffhanger... Lucky you! ;-P So, more questions rise, tension running high and suspicion grates nerves... What will happen next?  
Hehe, I love making people wonder! Leave me a review if you want! **

**I.K.117 out...**


	7. Chapter 7: More Questions

**Hey all! I'm back with more drama, confusion and even MORE questions! Are you ready?  
Seems like I keep forgetting the disclaimers... *pout***

**I do not own OHSHC or any of its characters, I only own the plot and any OC's that gets added. **

**Enjoy!**

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"_Where is her father?"_

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**Chapter 7 : Confusion **

"Well? Where is Ryuji-san?" Scar asked again after a few minutes when he got no answer. Yuichi answered Scar softly, telling him that Ranka-san was in a coma.

"What…. But… Oh shit… This is not good, if this gets out… Oh boy…" Scar started pacing back and forth muttering in some language that none of the others were familiar with. After pacing the whole room six times, he looked out the door. Seeing someone there his eyes narrowed and took on a murderous glint.

"Keep anyone except Yuichi-sensei and you three out of Haruhi's room at all cost." It was not a suggestion, it was a direct order from Scar as he walked out of the room with eye(s) shooting daggers at someone outside the waiting room.

He stormed out, walking straight towards another leather-clad fellow.

"Why would he say something like that?" Satoshi asked once Scar got out of earshot.

Scar was furious! How DARE that man do this to Haruhi?! The furious young boy stormed up to the the leather-clad guy at the reception desk.

"We need to talk." Scar started, skipping the greeting. It wasn't needed between the two comrades. The new guy could clearly see that his friend was not in the mood for pleasantries.

"Assemble your best guys_, HE_ has been moving." The green eye gleamed dangerously and Scar's comrade could see that something more was happening than just the SF being summoned. The SF was the group's Special Forces unit. That was clearly NOT a drill. Sparing a sidelong glance at Scar, he could see the strain of keeping his anger in check.

"Anybody else?"

Scar took a few moments to answer.

"Get me a team of six high-security guards. Let it be people you would trust with a defenseless girl as well as your life."

After another short silence, Scar continued:

"I need them right away. Oh, and send someone to get me some clean clothes will you? I won't be leaving here anytime soon."

The other guy only nodded and left to start making phone calls. He knew by now that it was not wise to ask questions. Besides, Scar looked like he was about to remove somebody's head if that person breathed too hard, so he decided to simply follow orders and await further instructions.

Back in the waiting room, all the guys were extremely confused, not to mention suspicious, of the complete stranger's behaviour. Yuichi knew who Scar is, so he also realized that there was a reason for him to say what he did. He decided to do as Scar said and motioned for the others to follow him to the girl's room.

Kyoya did not like this, not one bit. He could tell that Scar knew something that he did not and it aggravated him to no end. Haruhi was his friend and he had never heard her talk about any person named 'Scar'. He had no idea what to think about the leather-clad teenager.

Mori was uncomfortable with Scar's response to the condition of Haruhi and Ranka-san. It seemed like he knew something, but exactly what, and how much did he know? And WHY did he know anything? Haruhi never really mentioned friends other than the hosts, not even friends from middle school. Something just did not seem right.

Satoshi stared after Scar for a moment before he followed the others to Haruhi's room. There was something tickling the back of his mind, but he was unable to grasp it. He still felt like he knew Scar from somewhere, and his reaction to Haruhi's name just reinforced that feeling. Just what is going on here?

Darkness. Cold. What was that place? It was lonely, there was nobody else there. Far beyond there is a light. The only person started walking towards it, but as it came closer, the pain started. Headache, arms burning, legs feeling like lead. To escape the pain, the person went back to the comforting darkness. It was lonely, but at least there was no pain there…

Yuichi checked all the bandages and took Haruhi's vitals which he wrote down on a clipboard full of other medical notes.

The three boys stood to the side and out of his way. When he had finished, they all sat down around the room. Haruhi had been placed in a private room due to her delicate situation. Here she would be monitored at all times to ensure that she did not hurt herself again.

After a while, Scar came in looking a lot better than he had when they all first came into contact. He had changed into clean clothes, although it was still black leather. And he had also cleaned up a bit. Yuichi sent a glare at him and he merely lifted an oats bar.

"I am eating, see? I'll have my proper meal later."

Yuichi only scoffed and asked why they were told to be the only ones allowed in Haruhi's room. He was thinking about the practicality of it all. The nurses would need to be allowed in for the checkups and keeping an eye on her to prevent further danger to herself.

"How much do any of you know about her current situation, and I'm not talking about her current health?" Scar did not want to let them know the full extent of the complex situation if Haruhi hadn't told them anything, because that would mean that she didn't want them to know.

Mori spoke up, surprising everyone except for Scar, since he didn't know him.

"Not enough to understand what you are so concerned about. She only admitted to being in a pinch, not much more."

Kyoya stared at Mori from behind the glaring lenses of his glasses. Why would Haruhi go to Mori of all people? He was confused and he didn't like being confused.

Scar sighed before he spoke again: "I guess she tried to it herself. Again. Stupid girl… Anyway, she probably doesn't know that her life might be in danger. Listen, I'll tell you what I think you should know, but I refuse to tell you everything. If Haruhi wants you to know more, she will tell you herself."

Looking straight at Mori, Scar continued: "But before I start, I need to know how much she had already told you."

Mori and Scar stared at each other for a long moment before Mori spoke. He could see that Scar had no bad intentions towards Haruhi, so he decided to relay everything that Haruhi had told him to the rest of them.

Scar nodded solemnly as he listened to Mori's tale. With a sigh he said that was only a part of the whole story, but he refused to tell them more than that.

Satoshi, Kyoya and Yuichi were very surprised to hear the story that was Haruhi's life. All of them were now concerned for the girl's safety. Yuichi turned to Scar.

"What do you suggest?"

"Well, since Ryuji-san is currently in a coma, Haruhi is practically a sitting duck. The guy who's after her, would stop at nothing to get to her. I have arranged for some guards, they should be here shortly. You guys should get some rest."

Almost as an afterthought he added, "You look like hell." With that, he turned around to greet the man by the door which no-one else had noticed yet.

After a few softly spoken words, Scar let the man into the room completely and introduced him as the head of the security-team, Daichi. He would be in charge of Haruhi and her security while she is in the hospital.

Daichi bowed respectfully at his boss' friends. No need to stir up trouble before even beginning. He inquired about the four gentlemen in the room as he should, but he could not shake the feeling of distrust towards the bespectacled teen. Something about him sent Daichi's senses reeling. He made a mental note to do a background check on all of them, even if the Boss said they were to be trusted. No use in taking chances.

Scar was nothing if not observant, so he had immediately noticed the guard's unease towards Kyoya. Scar himself was a little concerned about him. He knew, of course, that Kyoya was an Ohtori and Yuichi-sensei's youngest brother, but he sensed something off about him and he was determined to find out what. He would protect Haruhi even if it cost him everything, she was just THAT important, but nobody needed to know why. Perhaps he should talk to Yuichi-sensei about this, after all, he had been keeping Scar's secret for years now, and surely he could be trusted?

Satoshi stared at the guard. He could see the man sizing them up and coming to conclusions. He also noticed how Daichi's gaze lingered on Kyoya-sempai, it was not really that much of a suspicious behaviour, but something seemed off about the way he stared at his sempai. Why would he stare at him like that? What was that nagging feeling in the back of his mind that he knew Scar from somewhere? It really bothered him.

Mori was deep in thought. He thought about everything that Haruhi had told him and the weird person who knows more about the situation than he does. Why would a complete stranger know so much about Haruhi's life if even Kyoya knew nothing? He had seen the surprise on Kyoya's face as he told them what he knew earlier, so he was convinced that it had (up till that point) only been himself and Haruhi that knew of that. Just who is Scar? How is he involved with Haruhi and what were his intensions?

A soft groan brought them all out of their thoughts. Scar and Yuichi were next to Haruhi in an instant. When she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw, was a room full of people that she did not immediately recognize. Because of this, she started to panic and hyperventilate, thrashing around and nearly pulling the IV from her arm. Yuichi immediately restrained her arms, telling Scar to hold down her legs, but he refused.

"Scar, we don't have time for this!"

Completely ignoring the doctor, Scar began talking to Haruhi in a gentle, yet kind of monotone voice.

"Haruhi, calm down. It's all right. No-one here means you any harm." He lifted his hand and covered her eyes. "Listen to my voice. Listen only to my voice for a moment. Breathe slowly in, and slowly out. Breathe in again, and slowly out."

With the sound of the voice and the hand covering the unknown people from her sight, Haruhi did as the voice instructed her, breathing slowly in and out. She had stopped trashing around as soon as the hand covered her eyes and the grip on her arm loosened. Her body, however, was still tight as a string. Seeing this, Scar gave new instructions in the same tone of voice.

"Now relax your muscles methodically. Start with your toes and consciously relax the muscles."

Doing as instructed, Haruhi tensed her muscles in her feet and released. Slowly working her way upwards, all the while the voice kept talking, urging her to continue, but to leave her arms for last. As she reached her neck, the voice began giving instructions for her arms.

Both Scar and Yuichi kept a close eye on Haruhi as she worked her muscles into relaxation. When she reached her arms, Scar's instructions became more precise in order for the doctor to evaluate whether or not there was more damage than they had thought at first. It turns out, there was something overlooked after all. Haruhi winched as she got to her shoulder. Narrowing his eyes, Scar still spoke to her in the same, almost hypnotic tone of voice.

"Haruhi, I am going to touch your hand, alright?"

After a brief hesitation, a soft 'hai' was heard. Scar gently touched her hand to let her know he was there. Every step of the way, he told her what he was going to do before doing it. This seemed to help Haruhi to stay calm, even if one of his hands was still over her eyes.

"I'm going to poke your muscles in your arm a little to see where the problem is. Tell me if I am hurting you or if you feel a sting, ok? I am also going to remove my hand now, but keep your eyes closed for a bit longer, alright?"

Both times Haruhi nodded at the questions, so Scar began at her hand and slowly making his way to her elbow, he rubbed and poked at the muscle. All the while he kept looking for any reaction of pain or discomfort in her face. Everything went well enough until he reached her shoulder. Haruhi cried out in pain as Scar prodded a particularly sore spot right under her collarbone.

Brows pulling together in concentration, Scar began talking to Haruhi again, telling her that he was going to help her sit up a little so that he can look at her shoulder blade. At her nod of consent, Scar put his one arm around her shoulders and the other under her knees to move her up enough so that she can be as comfortable as possible while he examined her shoulder further. The arm under her shoulders elicited a yelp of pain form the patient, but calmed down almost immediately at the soothing words spoken by 'The Voice' as she referred to the person speaking to her.

Scar took great care in working as gentle as possible, but you can only work SO gentle before the examination means nothing. In the process, Haruhi's muscles tensed again. Scar saw the bundle of nerves pulled together in a little ball right under the shoulder blade. Shaking his head lightly he spoke to Haruhi again.

"Your muscles have contracted below the shoulder blade. I am going to try to rub it out for you, but I'm afraid that if will hurt quite a lot. Unfortunately it has to be done; otherwise it will only get worse. I also need you to relax your other muscles, it could help a little. Can I continue? "

Haruhi tensed at the sound of more pain, but with the explanation, she gave her consent. She began relaxing again from the feet in hopes to take her mind off the inevitable pain. She felt the gentle hands beginning to poke and prod at the sore muscles. She felt the muscle tense and focused on relaxing it.

Scar realized what Haruhi was doing and grinned at the idea. He worked quickly and efficiently and in less than 10 minutes, the ball of tense muscle was relaxed and Haruhi was practically goo in his hands. After laying her down, he chuckled softly and began to speak to her in the same voice as before.

"Haruhi, you must open your eyes soon. When I remove my hands from your back and eyes, you will see six people. Not one of them means you any harm. There is your doctor, Yuichi Ohtori-sensei; your friend Kyoya Ohtori-san; your friend Takashi Morinozuka-san and his brother Satoshi Morinozuka-kun. There is also Daichi; he is my bodyguard which I am lending to you for a little while. Lastly there is me; my name is Scar, there is no reason to fear me or anyone in this room. Do you understand?"

Haruhi nodded slowly, so Scar asked if she was ready to open her eyes. Haruhi tensed slightly, but she nodded again. She opened her eyes and came face-to-face with a boy who had his dark-chocolate coloured hair covering his left eye; revealing his other eye which was bright green and shone with kindness. She turned her head to the other side, seeing Yuichi-sensei standing there. Blinking once, twice she looked at the other occupants in the room. Just as Scar had said, she saw Kyoya-sempai, Satoshi, and Mori-sempai, all with worried yet awed expressions on their faces. Looking at the door, she noticed an unfamiliar man which she assumed was 'Daichi'.

Scar smiled kindly at Haruhi as she took in her surroundings. He knew that she was still feeling weird because of the blood transfer, so he let her look around at her own pace. He noticed the questioning gazes from everybody else in the room. He knew they wanted to know how he had managed to calm Haruhi so fast, but he was not about to reveal any of his secrets just yet (if at all).

Haruhi turned back to Scar and studied his face. Her mind was still in a slight haze, but she had no idea why. She reached out a hand to wipe the annoying hair out of the boy's face. She wanted to look at his entire face, but as she reached out, she realized that something was in her arm. Looking down, she saw a needle connected to a tube. In the tube was a clear liquid running into her arm. She did not like the idea of some unknown liquid running into her system. Maybe that was why her mind is so fuzzy?

Scar noticed Haruhi's frown as she looked at the IV and realized her intension. Lightly grabbing her hand, he successfully brought her attention back to himself. He explained to her that she was currently in the hospital and that the IV had antibiotics in it to help her recover faster. At this explanation, Haruhi only nodded.

"Haruhi-chan, do you know why you are in the hospital right now?" Yuichi asked kindly. Instead of answering, Haruhi only stared back at him.

* * *

**Haha... oops, another cliffhanger... Just a quick question: _Can I bring in a little of the supernatural or do you want me to stay as close to my imagination's reality as possible_? Please leave me a review with your answer, it will determine a lot of the next chapter, so I would like the input of my readers!**

**Thanks to Kerilu95 for beta reading this chapter as well!**

**Read y'all next chapter!**


	8. Chapter 8:Secrets Starts Unfolding

**Hey all! Sorry for the long wait! Things are a bit hectic on my side...  
Thanks to Kerilou95 for both the proof-reading and editing of this chapter and also for helping me write a part of it, I really couldn't do it without her. So, on to the chapter!**

* * *

_"Haruhi-chan, do you know why you are in the hospital right now?" Yuichi asked kindly. Instead of answering, Haruhi only stared back at him._

* * *

**Chapter 8: Secrets unfolding**

Blankly staring at Yuichi, Haruhi merely blinked. Slowly, as the question sunk into her muddled mind, she looked down at her bandaged arms and frowned.

"What happened?"

Mori and Satoshi both frowned at the question. How is it possible that she doesn't know what had happened? She was after all the one who had caused all the damage. Confused and slightly bewildered Satoshi blurted the question out loud without really thinking.

"How can you not know what happened? You were-"

He was abruptly cut off by Kyoya-sempai who leveled his most severe 'Shadow king' glare on him. Wisely, Satoshi refrained from completing that sentence. He looked back at Haruhi and softly apologized for his insensitivity.

Haruhi did not even seem to realize that he was talking to her. She once again had that blank expression on her face. Turning to the one person who she thought she could trust with giving her the most honest answers, she stated her question.

"Why am I here?"

Haruhi stared at Scar as she waited for the somehow-friend-and-yet-he-is-a-complete-stranger to answer her question. Scar only stared back with an unreadable expression. Slowly shaking his head he gave her an honest answer.

"I don't know. I was kinda hoping you could tell me".

Scar looked at Haruhi as she frowned again. He knew of course why she could not immediately remember, but he did not want to be the one to tell her. It is generally better for patients to remember on their own, and given the circumstances, it was the best course of action for that moment. He continued to watch her with a carefully neutral expression. '_There it is_.'

As Scar thought this, Haruhi began trembling as she stared at her arms in shock and something akin to repulsion. "I did this?" The question was asked so softly that it was almost missed, but everyone in the room had been watching her very carefully. Scar looked at the other teens in the room and repeated Haruhi's earlier question.

"What happened?" Even though he was looking at Satoshi as he asked, he was hoping that Haruhi would speak for herself. He was not disappointed.

In a voice only audible to Yuichi-sensei and Scar, Haruhi spoke of what she had done. She was still clearly in shock, but at least she was talking. Somehow, Haruhi felt deeply ashamed of herself for doing what she did, but she could remember the daze and the inability to control her own actions quite well. Neither of the two who could hear her had judged her, that much she could see by the sympathy and understanding in their eyes.

Looking at Scar as though searching for approval of some sort, she looked into the kind eyes of a person who also seemed to have suffered much. She could see what very few have ever seen: a hurt, scared boy looking for something to keep living for. How she knew this, she had no idea, but she was determined to help him. Just as quickly as the expression showed, just as quickly it disappeared.

A knock on the door startled everyone out of their thoughts. Satoshi saw the young man first, but before he could say anything, a little girl came in behind the man holding onto his hand as if it was a lifeline. Little did he realize just how close to the truth he was.

Scar looked down and gave the little girl a soft smile. "Hi Emmy-chan. How are you feeling?" The girl looked at him for a long moment before she nodded quickly. No word passed her lips, but Scar seemed satisfied for a reason unknown to anyone but him.

"Would you like to come and meet Haruhi? She is a friend of mine." Scar spoke in gentle tones to the girl who was apparently called 'Emmy'. Everybody looked on as if in some kind of trance as Emmy skirted as far as possible from everybody else, but headed straight for the most dangerous one of all: Scar.

Moving as fast as she could with a limp and an apparently-broken arm, little Emmy walked towards Scar and raised her good arm towards him. Scar smiled at her before gently picking her up, being careful of her injured side. With Emmy in his arms, Scar sat down next to Haruhi on the hospital bed. In gentle tones, he introduced Emmy to Haruhi, softly stating that Haruhi will not hurt her.

Emmy and Haruhi stared at each other for a few moments before Emmy gave a small, timid smile. Still no word passed her lips, but Scar once again seemed satisfied for some unknown reason. Haruhi gave a small smile in response and held out a hand. Only a moment of hesitation passed before Emmy put a slightly shaking hand in Haruhi's. Scar-sama had said that that girl won't hurt her, and Emmy trusted Scar-sama, so it was okay to trust Haruhi-san as well, right?

Everyone in the room, except for Daichi and the latest arrival, was openly gaping at the sight of Scar being so gentle with the little girl, especially since they had witnessed him threatening a nurse not long before. The distrust was rising ever higher for both Mori and Kyoya. Neither knew what to make of that stranger and his even **stranger** behaviour.

The young man still standing at the door spoke up after witnessing little Emmy reacting to anyone but himself and Scar. "Perhaps, if the doctor would permit, Emmy-chan could stay with the young lady for tonight? She seems to have taken a liking to her. They might be good for each other."

Scar watched both girls as they silently bonded. Emmy had not spoken a word since Scar had found her earlier in the day and she shied away from any and all physical contact with anyone. The fact that she had reached out to Haruhi **meant** something. Because of this, he nodded his ascent and looked to Yuichi for permission.

The good doctor did not know about Emmy's shyness around others, but he knew Scar and he also knew that there had to be a reason for giving his consent. Scar rarely did anything without a reason, and when it came to the children he took in, it was always with their best interest at heart. He watched as the little girl traced patterns on the back of Haruhi's hand, as though wanting to ask something but stalling. Yuichi smiled a little at the sight at nodded. He also believed that the girls would be good for each other.

"Just one question, Scar. About the guards…?" Yuichi asked, not really wanting to know the answer, but knowing that it was important that he did. Scar looked him straight in the eye when he spoke.

"Later."

And that was that. Yuichi did not ask anything more and Scar had already turned his attention back to the girls.

Daichi chose that moment to speak up. "Perhaps we should all step outside to let the patients get their rest."

Scar looked at him with amusement sparkling in his eyes. "Are you kicking me out as well Daichi?"

Daichi answered in the same jesting tone his employer had used. "Well, since you are my boss and I would really like to keep my job, so no, I am not 'kicking you out'. I am merely making a suggestion in the good interest of the beautiful patients."

Scar smirked a little-boy-with-a-secret type of smirk at Daichi and agreed to let the girls rest. He could see both their eyes drooping already. He softly asked Emmy if she would like to stay with Haruhi for the night, at which the girl nodded quite vigorously. A chuckle left both Scar and Yuichi's throats at the same time.

"Alright Princess. You can stay."

Emmy nodded her thanks and crawled under the covers that Scar was holding up for her, but not before giving him a shy hug. Scar only smiled softly at her as he gently tucked her in.

Haruhi moved over a little to make room for her new friend. Her mind had cleared a little, but she was tired. She did not realize the implication of what Scar and Yuichi-sensei had been talking about in regards to the guards. She only wanted to embrace the welcoming darkness of sleep. The confusion only served to give her a splitting headache, so she chose to ignore it for the time being.

Everybody except Mori, Kyoya and Scar filed out of the room. Scar stood next to the bed and raised an eyebrow, but made no move towards the door. Mori and Kyoya were both still seated. Both wanted answers and neither wanted to leave Haruhi in the hands of a complete stranger that they knew to be violent.

Scar waited patiently for one of them to speak up. He knew that they wanted answers, but he was not about to give answers just yet. He still did not trust the Ohtori kid. Morinozuka on the other hand; he had a feeling he could trust him with his very life without concern.

Kyoya tried to stare that 'Scar' person down as he would one of his business competitors, but to his great annoyance, Scar merely stared back. Scar did not break eye contact or flinch under Kyoya's stare, after all, he was used to much more dangerous people trying to stare him down. Kyoya's stare was like looking into the eyes of a puppy compared to what he normally had to put up with, so he was not bothered by his staring at all. He felt like yawning, but for the sake of politeness, he suppressed it.

Kyoya was getting annoyed. He could not stare that person down as he usually would anybody else. He hated that his most successful intimidation technique was not working. He decided to simply ask straight out what he wanted to know.

"Who are you really?"

Scar very nearly sighed and rolled his eyes, but suppressed the urge. That was THE most basic question he heard almost on a daily basis. It was also one that he very rarely answered, at least, he rarely answered it truthfully. So he stuck to being truthful but vague as he answered.

"A businessman and a friend."

Kyoya frowned at the answer, it was not what he wanted to know, but he also knew that Scar would not give a straight answer. He bit back a growl of frustration.

Mori had watched the whole exchange with his usual expressionless face. He had been surprised to see that Scar had not broken down in the face of Kyoya's stare as he had seen so many others do. The vague answer did not surprised him, even though he had somewhat hoped for a straight one. He could practically feel Kyoya's frustration rolling off of him in waves, so he decided to ask the next question.

"Why help her? And why the strong reaction when you heard that she is in the hospital?"

There was no question about who the 'her' was. Scar looked at Mori and formulated an acceptable, yet vague answer in his mind before speaking. Truthfully, he just wanted to give up and spill his guts to Morinozuka, but not with the Ohtori sitting right there, he still did not trust him.

"I'm simply returning the favor."

Mori did not quite understand the answer, but he could sort of relate. Returning a favor by saving someone. He knew that feeling all too well. He gave a nod. The answer, even though vague, satisfied him. He was now comfortable enough to leave Haruhi in that person's care. He realized that Scar would not hurt her, and that was all he could ask for. Mori stood up and left the room after a brief nod at Scar and a quick look at the girls to see if they are comfortable.

With only Scar and Kyoya left, Scar decided to speak up and be done with it.

"I don't trust you, you don't trust me. It's obvious, so let's just agree to disagree and be done with it. I won't answer your questions and I'm guessing you won't answer mine. For the sake of the girls, just let it be."

Scar stared at Kyoya without much of an expression while waiting for his answer. Kyoya in turn, stared right back. As much as he hated to admit it, the guy was right. Neither would answer the other's questions and neither trusted the other person. Grudgingly, kyoya gave a sharp nod of acceptance, but being Kyoya had to have the last word.

"This is not over."

Scar simply shrugged. "I know. You're gonna go digging into my deep dark past and when you reach a certain point, you will end up dead. Just like all the others who tried to figure out who I am. I am warning you now: Don't go and scratch where you don't itch. Your friends won't be happy if you die. I can't really care less, but because I know that Haruhi does, I'm asking you nicely. Please leave me and my past the mystery it is. I don't kill people, but the ones who guard my past do not have any reason not to. Not even I am allowed to know everything of my past and it is MY LIFE. So do everyone a favor and leave it be."

With that, Scar turned and left the room, leaving a shocked Kyoya behind. Now he was even more determined to find out who Scar really is. "_Not even __**I**__ am allowed to know everything of my past…" _That did not sound right. Kyoya frowned as he thought of Scar's expression with that admission. He looked almost like a lost child. Kyoya shook his head and left after looking to see that Haruhi and Emmy are alright.

When Kyoya reached the waiting room, everyone was already there. Everyone except Scar and his two friends were sitting around looking exhausted. Scar was looking grim as he spoke to the guy who had brought Emmy in earlier. He seemed very mad about something and Daichi looked a little green. The man stood against the wall, seemingly calm, but even Kyoya could detect the underlying anger in his stance. It was in the way he was gripping his arm, knuckles white.

Scar expelled a hard breath. One more child, one more life, one more broken soul. Who cares right? Children are adaptable; they will be fine, right?

WRONG!

Scar lowered his head and tried to keep his breathing as even as possible while his nails dug into his palms, drawing blood. His rage was white-hot behind his eyelids. A child. She was just a child! He started trembling with the held back rage. He really needed to hit something right at that moment. His vision went red behind his still-closed eyelids. Knowing that in his current condition he was a danger to anyone who dared to approach him, he spun on his heel and stalked to the bathroom.

Daichi was still feeling sick. How could anyone do something like that to a little girl? Hell, she was only 8 years old! His head was a little whoozy as he pushed off the wall to take his place next to Haruhi's door as he was supposed to. His partner for the night looked at him with concern, but Daichi simply waved his concern away.

Everybody else seemed as confused as Kyoya felt at that second. Nobody seemed to know what had happened in the few short minutes it took Kyoya to come in from Haruhi's room. All they saw was rage building in two of the three talking in the far corner and the third looking sick. It was very confusing.

Satoshi was tired. It was almost 3am and he had had no rest that night. His head was starting to get all fuzzy with exhaustion. He nodded off not long before Scar stormed off. Mori saw that his brother fell asleep and realized how tired he himself was. He knew he should probably get Satoshi home to sleep, but he still needed answers. His body seemed to disagree with the idea of staying awake any longer, so he called a driver to pick him and Satoshi up to go home. He could get his answers later.

Kyoya heard the phone call and decided to go home as well. He could do nothing more at the hospital anyway. He gave a half-hearted goodbye to Mori and to Yuichi before walking off to find his driver who was no doubt still somewhere outside. Kyoya was exhausted, but his mind was reeling and he knew that he would not be sleeping that night.

When the Morinozukas had also left, it was only Yuichi and Scar's friend left in the waiting room. Yuichi had never met the lad, but he had seen him with Scar enough to know that he could give him some answers.

"What is your name?" Yuichi decided to start a conversation. The silence was kind of unnerving.

The young man stared at the doctor for a moment before he answered him.

"Kei. I know you; you're Ohtori-sensei aren't you? The one who always does the Boss' check-ups?"

Yuichi nodded. He was (as far as he knew) the only doctor to treat Scar's wounds, does his check-ups and handles the blood donations from Scar and most of his men as well.

"May I ask you something?" Yuichi would have asked even if Kei had refused to answer. Kei looked at him strangely for a moment before speaking again.

"You can ask; doesn't mean I'll answer though."

Yuichi nodded his acceptance. It was more than he had dared to hope for anyway. "What made Scar so angry just now?" Yuichi had never really seen Scar as angry as he had been at that moment, it concerned him.

Kei stared at Yuichi with a curious expression. How much would be safe to tell the doctor? How much does he already know if he knows anything at all? Scar does not usually talk about that sort of situations with anyone except the people involved, so the question remains: How much does the Boss trust his doctor?

After enduring an unnerving scrutiny, Yuichi did not know whether or not it was worth knowing. After all, he is JUST the doctor. The moment he decided to tell Kei to forget that he had asked, the boy started talking.

"We just received the official reports from Emmy-chan's case. Turns out that she was not the only victim. When we had raided the house after Boss had found Emmy-chan, we had missed a secret passage. The mother was in there. We just received the pictures of the police raid, it aint pretty man. Me an' the Boss, we work to protect as many as we can; I mean, we know can't save 'em all, but it makes us real mad every time we see that sh*t.

"The pictures; ya can't even look in their eyes without seeing a broken soul. The way those b*st*rds broke their bodies… it aint make no sense until ya see it. Broken arms, legs, ribs pokin' outa the side… collar bones visible through the knife wounds. It's hell Doc! Daichi – ya saw how he almost threw up? That was the reaction every one of those coppers got when they saw it. Hardened men who sees horrors every day, retching after only a look at one of those photo's. Its horror ya can't tell ta anybody, 'cause they won't get it unless they see fo' themselves."

Kei took a deep breath and tried to unclench his hands – with little success. He did not close his eyes, because he knew – close your eyes and the horrendous pictures are all you will see. After a few tense minutes of calming himself, he spoke again.

"There was another lill' girl too. Eight years old. It was **nasty**, nasty I tell ya! The bruises, the evidence of rape… Doc, ya can't know what it's like ta see a child like that. Even the ambulance men threw up when they saw her.

"I was hopin' ya know. I was REALLY hopin' the guy would be brought out. I wanted to beat him up SO SO BAD, but… That sick piece of sh*t shot himself! One bullet in the head. Sick man… He left the girl and the woman alive in their pain and then he gone an' kill his own sh*tty a$$. I wanted him alive so bad so that me an' da Boss can give back what he dealt his victims, but he chose da easy way out an' killed himself!

"I really feel sorry for the doctors who have to try and piece those poor women back together. There are probably no whole bones in their bodies."

Kei was visibly shaking as he tried to keep his emotions under control. It seemed that Kei spoke with his street-fighter type of speech when he is upset. Yuichi was feeling a little faint himself. Only once had he seen a situation as the one Kei had just described to him and he had almost passed out. In that light, he could understand how the policemen and the paramedics felt; especially since they don't deal with those specific types of situations every day. Just as Kei had finished talking, Scar walked back in.

"No need to pity the doctors, the women are dead."

It was said in complete monotone, but Yuichi could feel the anger and despair radiating off of both the other occupants of the room.

Kei sighed. "Maybe it's better that way. Now they won't have to deal with the pain and looks of pity and everything, yea?"

Scar looked like he might lash out, but in the end he only sighed. He closed his eyes for a moment before saying that Kei might be right. Now the girls could rest in peace. Nobody would judge or pity them for their past circumstances. Scar decided there and then that he and his men would give them a proper funeral.

Kei nodded and went off to make the arrangements. Scar and Yuichi stayed behind. Scar knew that the good doctor would need to know what would be happening with the guards and other important stuff to do with Haruhi so he sat down to have their talk. Even though it was the early hours of the morning, both were alert and aware of the pressing situation.

Scar kept it brief. He explained that the guards would rotate shifts at odd hours so that Haruhi would be guarded at all times and the shifts would never switch at the same time every day. Guards would be in groups of two for obvious reasons. Only the people who had been with Haruhi that night would be allowed in her room. Anyone else would need to get clearance first.

Yuichi nodded at the logic but he was still concerned about the fact that the nurses would need access to check on Haruhi at regular intervals and record her vitals – among other things.

Scar sat for a moment seemingly lost in thought. He then spoke up.

"I would be here most of the time to look after Emmy-chan anyway, so I could always look after Haruhi while I'm at it. I AM after all qualified."

Scar gave a cheeky grin which Yuichi quickly wiped off with his next words.

"That's all well and good, but I may not – in regards to hospital policy- have a male nurse taking care of a female patient. And NO, you may not dress yourself up as a female nurse again. I almost lost my job because of that incident, even though it was done for a very good reason."

Scar visibly deflated, but he knew what the doc said was true. He simply said that he would organize a background check on all the nurses and then pick two, one for night-shift and one for day-shift to look after Haruhi, but he would still be around. That was one point he refused to let up on. Yuichi knew from experience that anything else he might say after that would only fall on deaf ears, so he nodded and left it at that.

* * *

Beep- BEEP- BEEP- BEE—

SMACK!

The poor alarm clock did not even have a chance to defend itself against the powerful fist that smashed its gears. The owner of said powerful fist started emitting a purple aura of doom. Luckily, the alarm clock was no more, so it did not need to be subjected to the horrors of the purple aura.

Cranky did not even begin to cover the black mood of the Shadow king. He was bone-dead-tired and no amount of coffee (whether high- or low grade) would be able to save the day from his black mood.

In another (more traditional) mansion a young teenager had just abused his own alarm clock, even though this one was at least still in one piece. Satoshi was feeling the late night in his very bones that morning. Groaning, he sat up to stumble his way towards his bathroom to take a cold shower in hopes that it would wake him up a little.

Mori was already awake. His usual routine of waking up with the dawn was paying off on that particular morning. Even though he had only about two and a half hours of sleep, he still woke at the crack of dawn for his morning workout before school. Usually, Mori drank tea with his breakfast, so when he had started to down one cup of (high-grade) coffee after another, the cook was getting worried.

Before he could ask if Master Takashi was feeling alright, a bouncy, hyper-as-can-be blond bounced into the kitchen.

"Morning Takashi! We have to get to school early today, Tama-chan said there is going to be a meeting this morning. By the way, why didn't you answer your phone last night? Come to think of it, Kyo-chan didn't answer either. Hmm, I wonder why."

Hani only noticed Takashi's dazed state when he did not hear the customary 'Aa' in answer to his babbling. He frowned at his cousin in confusion. "What is wrong Takashi? You look like you didn't sleep at all, did something happen?"

Mori took a while to process Mitsukuni's rambling and his question. '_Oh boy.' _ He never thought of what to say to his cousin! Now what? He knew that Mitsukuni would know if he lied to him, but he also had to honor the promise he had made to Haruhi. He had no idea what to tell the little blond.

As Mori was trying to get thoughts through his dazed mind, Satoshi stumbled in and ungracefully plopped down in the closest chair, putting his head on his arms and promptly falling asleep again. Hani got even more confused with this development, Satoshi was always energy personified. What could have happened to exhaust the ever energized Satoshi and his stoic brother?

Yasuchika was getting annoyed. Satoshi was normally out here by now. He was not really up to a fight with his alien brother, but they were going to be late if Satoshi did not hurry up. After a few moments, Hani came running outside – without his tall shadow. Chika frowned; those two were never apart. Was Takashi sick or something?

* * *

Hani ran towards Chika even though he knew they were supposed to engage in battle anytime they came within sight of each other. The current situation was more important than that. Something was dreadfully wrong with both their cousins and he needed Chika's help.

At the front gate of Ouran Academy, a certain host club King was waiting for his most trusted advisor to show up. He had gotten a brilliant idea for a future cosplay for the club and being Tamaki, couldn't wait to share it with Kyoya. Little did he know in how much mortal danger he was going to in that morning.

* * *

The troublesome duo showed up before the Shadow king, and as per usual, had to rile up their king. It was after all their favorite pastime. Tamaki tended to freak out in the best of ways, which is why he was almost always the one on the receiving end of their merciless teasing. That morning, however, they did not even get a chance to start teasing him before the news had started to reach their side of the crowd.

"Hey have you heard about Fujioka-kun? They say he is the hospital! I wonder what happened. Did he get hurt saving a princess from a madman? *SQUEEL!*"

The fangirls were squealing and giggling loudly about the (supposed) heroics of their precious Haruhi-kun. None of them had noticed the shocked and terrified faces of the three hosts present.

As always Kyoya had impeccable timing, for that was the moment where he walked unto school grounds. Tamaki and the twins practically attacked him with questions, not even giving him a moment to breath before firing the next question. A dark purple aura of doom finally made them aware of the fact that their Vice-president was not in a good mood.

Tamaki decided to brave the storm anyway. "Mon ami, is it true? Is my precious daughter really in the hospital? And why did you not call me? My darling Haruhi must have been so alone and scared without Daddy to hold her hand during her hour of need!"

It really is a good thing that the four hosts had made their way to music room 3 before Tamaki's outburst. It would not do to have Haruhi's gender revealed because Tamaki could not keep his big mouth shut. Unfortunately, that also meant that Tamaki and the twins were the only ones to see Kyoya in 'Extremely Angry Shadowking' mode.

Just before Kyoya could give them a major tongue-lashing, Hani, Mori and both their brothers came in. The Morinozuka brothers looking more than a little worse for wear. The biggest surprise though, was the fact that Hani and Chika were not fighting and neither looked like they had been in a fight during the earlier morning either.

"Kyoya, we need your-" Hani was abruptly cut off by the look on Kyoya's face. If looks could kill, both Tamaki and the twins would be six feet under already. That was obvious in the way all three were cowering in the corner clutching onto each other for dear life. Not to mention Kyoya's murderous expression.

Hani gulped as he slowly crept closer to the angry Shadow king. He had to know what had happened to his friend and cousin, and also whether or not the rumors of Haruhi being in hospital was true. It had really upset the short blond when one of the regular host club customers had come up to him with tears in her eyes, asking if Haruhi-kun was really in the hospital because he had saved somebody?

Judging by the looks of Kyoya and his cousins, he surmised that something had indeed happened. Looking around, he did not see Haruhi anywhere and his fear escalated.

If Haruhi was not there, it meant that there was at least **some** truth in the rumors. Hani turned already-tear-filled eyes towards Kyoya in hopes of getting answers.

Kyoya and Mori locked eyes for a brief moment as though holding a silent conversation.

Satoshi was semi-passed out against the wall next to the door with Chika close by to prevent him from falling, should he fall asleep again as he had done on the way to school.

Mori sighed inwardly. It seems like he had been elected for the explanation, even though he had no idea who was actually a part of that decision. Mori was exhausted, but their friends deserved to know the truth (or at least a part of it).

He abruptly cut off Tamaki's whining by clearing his throat. Everyone turned to him in shock. Nobody (except his brother and cousin, and now Kyoya) had ever heard him speak more than in monosyllables.

He spoke in short sentences, only telling some of the bare facts. Yes, Haruhi is in hospital. No she did not save someone in some heroic deed. She is not in trouble (a lie, but he did not want to tell them the truth). Ranka does not know about it (since he IS still in a coma, but they don't know that yet).

Everybody stared at Mori when he was finished. Most of their mouths were hanging open. Kyoya sighed in temporary relief. All their annoying questions were making his headache worse. Now he had to try and convince them that they cannot skip school to go to Haruhi. '_Oh joy…'_

The silence that hung in the room was almost deafening. Tamaki was the first to brave the abyss that surrounded Mori's last statements. His eyes were shadowed and his fists clenched.

"What…do you mean?" he asked in a trembling voice. His question was met with silence. "So it's true then?" his shoulders started shaking. "My Haruhi is really in the hospital?"

Even if his face didn't show it, Mori felt bad for their 'king.' He felt even worse that he couldn't answer all of his liege's questions.

"How the hell did that happen?" Tamaki suddenly looked up at Mori with angry tear-filled eyes. "What the hell happened?!" Tamaki practically shouted. He ran up to Mori and took him by the collar. "She was with you, wasn't she? So how could you have let my precious Haruhi get hurt?!"

"Tama-chan…" Hani-senpai whispered from where he sat against the wall. He could feel Tamaki's righteous anger oozing off of him.

"Come on boss…calm down!" Kaoru insisted.

"Yeah, I'm sure everyone is wondering about the same things…" Hikaru joined in. "Like what was she doing before…"

"What happened before…" Kaoru added.

"…with whom she…"

"…the time at…"

"…which place she…"

"…she was with…"

"…what time it was…"

The twins were speaking simultaneously, but were horribly out of sync. Quite unusual for them.

Satoshi was surprised at how dire the situation had become, for even the twins were completely out of sync. He looked over at Kyoya and saw the slightest glimmer of surprise in his face as well. The twins were **never** out of sync.

"Calm down, Tamaki" Mori said softly.

"NO!" Tamaki refused. He shoved Mori away. Tamaki looked up at Kyoya and focused his death glare on him. Kyoya narrowed his eyes in response.

"I cannot tell you much now because of...the difficult circumstances surrounding this incident" Kyoya said, adjusting his glasses slightly, making the light reflect on the lens, hiding his eyes. Tamaki grunted in frustration.

"Fine, if nobody will tell me anything, then I'll just find out myself!" Tamaki said as he stomped towards the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" Kyoya asked. Tamaki stopped short in his tracks.

"What else? I'm going to see Haruhi! And you're not going to tell me I can't!" Tamaki said, pointing an accusing finger at Kyoya.

"It's probably not a good idea to fight with Kyo-chan' Hani pointed out. He also wanted to go see Haruhi, but he knew what Kyoya would say.

"You can't go" Kyoya said simply, as if his word was law in that instance.

"Why not? You can't stop me!" Tamaki spat, still furious.

"We're coming too boss!"

"Let us join you Boss!" The twins said simultaneously once again.

"I can't stop you, but 52 appointments and a massive debt of $250 000 to pay because of the last 'OHSHC Special Yacht Tour Extravaganza for the Ladies, can!" Kyoya stated as he pulled out a 3 meter long bill out of seemingly nowhere.

Mori saw the devastated look on Tamaki's face and instantly felt the need to salvage the situation.

"Haruhi's resting now. We should not disturb her" Mori said. When he saw that Tamaki was about to protest, he merely shook his head once. "We are the ones who know her situation best, so you can trust us. We can go by later."

Tamaki swayed. He still had some fight left in him, but relented on account of Mori's profound argument. It wasn't often when he heard Mori speak that much anyway, meaning that this was very important.

Tamaki covered his face with his hand. Then, in an elegant movement, he swiped his hair out of his face and a dashing debonair smile graced his face. It was part of a mask he was all too familiar with wearing.

"I will endure this day, for Haruhi!" Tamaki resolved, with sparkles surrounding him.

'_This is going to be a VERY long day.' _Kyoya sighed mentally at the sight of his best friend becoming his usual hyper self, even though he knew very well that it was only a mask.

* * *

**Okay, so I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! It was much longer that previous ones... Almost 13 pages in word... **

**Alrighty, so only one reviewer had answered my question in the previous chapter. _Can I bring in a little supernatural in my story or would you (that is = my readers) like for me to keep it completely realistic?_ Please drop a review with your answer!**

**I.K. out ^_^**


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